Writing By Ismai’l Adamu, Editing By Godwin Duru
As the three-year partnership between UNICEF, the Global Alliance for Vaccination and Immunization (GAVI), and the Katsina State government winds up this year, Governor Dikko Umar Radda has pledged the state government’s commitment to sustain and consolidate the gains recorded under partnership.
He gave the assurance at the hand over ceremony of the UNICEF/GAVI/PHC Memorandum of Understanding and close out document, held at Government House in Katsina.
He noted that the support from the partnership has aided the state in strengthening healthcare infrastructure and vaccine distribution and also improved key indices in maternal and child health.
“While this occasion marks the official close out of the MoU, the Katsina State government’s commitment to strengthening the primary health care system does not end here, we remain fully dedicated to sustain and build upon the gains achieved.
“My administration will continue to prioritize immunization and ensure that every child, regardless of location, has access to life-saving vaccines, and we will continue to allocate resources for immunization, disease control and other health related issues.
“Part of what we did in this regard is the upgrading of many Primary Healthcare Centers in many parts of the state to General Hospitals”, Radda said.
In his remarks, the Executive Secretary of the Katsina State Healthcare Development Agency, Dr. Shamsuddeen Yahaya said the partnership has greatly improved vaccination coverage and healthcare delivery in the state.
“Vaccines are very fragile, once you expose them to relatively high temperatures, they lose their potency.
“Through this MoU, the state has been provided with a solar refrigerated van which is the latest anywhere in the world, it costs over $200 thousand, it was donated by UNICEF on behalf of GAVI.
“361 motorcycles with solar-drive refrigerators for vaccine storage were also supplied to the state, we have 1,618 health facilities that are providing routine immunization.
“Through this program, all the 361 wards in the state have this solar refrigerators to ensure that at every point in time we preserve our vaccines at a temperature of between 2 and 8 degrees”, Dr. Yahaya said.
Ismail Adamu
